There is still a lot of anger among some Arsenal fans, even though the planned protest against Arsene Wenger and the Arsenal board at the home game against Norwich City last weekend seemed to show more support for the beleaguered boss than a united determination to see him replaced as manager.
Despite the fact that I see myself on the side that supports him, I have been frustrated with Wenger this season, or more accurately I have been dismayed at seeing yet another, and arguably the best, chance of a Premier League title slip away. I also think that some perspective is required, though.
The fact of the matter is that the Gunners are on course to keep up our amazing record of qualifying for the Champions League and that is something that not one of our big Premier League rivals can match. A lot of Arsenal fans seem to think that this is not really an achievement at all and when Wenger points to his record he receives more scorn than praise from certain sections of the Arsenal fanbase and the football media.
But if you want to see what it really means then perhaps you should look at how other clubs see a top four finish. Louis van Gaal would give his right arm to achieve it this season but probably won’t and the spuds have been trying and failing season after season. Just check out the words Manuel Pellegrini reported by Sky Sports this week.
The Man City manager said, “If you are not in the top four and in the Champions League the next year, to demonstrate you are one of the best teams in England, then for me it’s a disaster of a season.
“That’s why I always said last year, when we didn’t win any titles, that it was not a disaster. It was not a good season but a disaster is when you are not involved in the next season’s Champions League. That is a disaster for all the big teams.
“I always think in a positive way, so I hope that we are going to be in that top four position.”
If Arsenal avoid defeat at the Etihad tomorrow we are in and if not we are likely to seal the deal next week against Aston Villa. I know it is hard to get past the disappointment of missing the title but have we really become so demanding and complacent that we cannot see that a top four finish is actually worth getting?
Our best chance to win the Epl in years, and what did we do? Bottled it big time!
4th place can only be deemed a success from a financial perspective. Stan and board are happy, because the dollars roll in from this ‘achievement’ as do new mega bucks sponsorships.
But if we are talking in football terms with Arsene’s and his teams it makes no difference whatsoever.
Consistently mediocre is what it is.
Anyone who considers the Alexis and Ozil signings of being successful, as a transfer target point of view, would consider it a success. CL brought these targets here. There are many areas you can strive to be successful at before reaching the end success. Like for you, I’m sure you’d consider it a success if we dropped Arsene Wenger for good. Or someone else might think him moving up stairs would aid our success.
Of course, taking part in the champions league is very important, for the best teams who want to complete in it.
that’s where all the ‘Best’ players want to play and ‘Compete’
Amongst the Best ‘Teams’ in Europe!
There’s 3 key words there, where wenger fails to address!
He has no desire to compete, for him it’s the taking part that counts, not the winning it… abit like the Olympics!
If he really wanted to win the premier league and champions league, he would have signed the best to inhence our chances, what no money? ? ? sell 3 of our player’s and buy one Star player! But Nooo he believes in the squad that he has, which continues to prove him wrong and delusional.
u know the problem with some fans make top four seem more important than a trophy.the reason arsenal wants top four is because of the money thats a fact everyone knows that.but as we move to city ,man u they want ucl so that they can attract the big names thays why man u is fighting ,same mancity notop four they know attracting world class players will be tough.do u think thats the same reason arsenal wants to finish top four?? its a shame what we hve become as a club that we now compare ourselves to other clubs just to feel gud
Fans will only realise how difficult a thing it is to be in the CL every season, is when we eventually do go a number of years finishing just outside it. It will happen at some stage and then we’ll be watching other teams pick up the transfer targets who will not move to us because of you know why? We’d have to find a manager who can be clever with money and finding diamonds. It will happen at some stage I have no doubt, especially with the league raking it in these days, and everybody wanting to adopt the Arsenal approach.
If your wondering what I mean about Arsenal approach. I mean targeting a clever and somewhat young foreign manager who has an eye for playing attractive football and bringing through youngsters. Try to remain stable while sorting out a bigger ground move or an expansion. More and more clubs will eventually go this path after seeing how it worked out for us who took the first leap. Tourists is probably the no1 reason why it could work for most PL clubs. Need the foreign attractive football element too though.
Yeah, Wenger doesn’t talk about that anymore!
You know…. The reasons for the bigger stadium,
The incoming extra cash that would supposedly make us an elite force who could compete with the bigger and richer clubs in the transfer market! ?
Don’t you see it now!… The fabricated lies!.. The only difference the stadium made, is that the rich got richer and the poor fan’s got poorer! ?
? “Hey Boy.. Here’s a large coin… Now go and buy the largest Christmas Turkey in the Butchers window! And keep the change you filthy animal” ? ?
(Ebenezerrrrr Scrooge v Home alone)
Arsenal approach, youngsters, when did all these ever worked for Arsenal? That philosophy was invented but I never saw it bring EPL or champions league, don’t you think that’s a stinky approach? How many more years do you want Arsenal to go through the same cycle that you are so fond of?? Fans want trophies, normal fans. But some other fans want top 4 and no trophy, and a lifetime 8m payment to their deluded prophet..
Of course I forgot the FA Cup stopped being a trophy when Wenger won it TWICE
Even Birmingham and co. have won it, on the 10 years window till current. For Arsenal statue we deserve better, admin I see you have settled with 4th place trophy and two back to back FA cups, while our rivals (real rivals – Man U, Man city, Chelsea) are winning EPLs and UCLs and happy with any position they are with. as a team we are stuck there and you Don’t want better?
Man united and Chelsea have won nothing thus year and are not in top four. You are saying their fans are happy?
Do you think it is easy to win the Premiership? Only one team has won more games than Arsenal and you want to sack the manager? Show some respect. ..
thats why we are crying wenger out coz arsenal is stalling and u talk about missing top four nxt season top four will be like battling for epl and I can guarantee u wengers target nxt year is top four for sure
But is Champions league really
that important? It has not helped
Arsenal win the EPL in 12 years.
The teams we play in the group
stage are often rubbish like
Olympiakos Besiktas Zagreb who are no better than Stoke.
We always go out in the round of 16 after always losing the home leg.
The money we get is spent on buying rubbish like
Debuchi Podolski Gabriel and paying Arteta Rosicky
Flamini Wilshere Walcott + Chamberlain who are useless.
Leicester did not need money or world class players
to win the league and not being in the Champions league
actually made it easier for them to win the EPL.
Once upon a time. . Wenger also used to use the importance of the 4th place trophy (qualification of the champions league) as a good excuse to attract quality signings! ?
But since the money has been available,( for the past 4 season’s) , he doesn’t say that anymore.
Now its. .. “Look!.we are working on it 24/7 and if we can do it… we will do it… errr .. but only if it is available”
I can’t wait for the transfer window to open! ?
We must try for at least 3rd place or better still 2nd and finish in front of the spuds .. If Liverpool win the Europa cup then 4th place becomes invalid
Is this true?
nah our fourth place trophy is safe don’t worry
Big words from Mancini – but its all subjective. Meaning success is in the eye of the beholder. To certain teams, like Man United who are still in a major transitional phase, of course a top four finish is success. But do you think when Fergie was around, finishing 3rd or 4th was successful? Even second? Not a chance!. Fergie had high standards, his players knew this and they knew they either performed or got ejected. Pellegrini’s superiors also seem to disagree with him and his statement, in the last two seasons he hasn’t won the BPL (yet he finished in the top 4) but he is given the boot none the less?
So no Pellegrini, I don’t agree with your statement, especially at Arsenal where a top four finish is the highest accolade we will ever receive under Wenger, a manager who has been in charge of the club for two decades and had the best chance by a mile of winning the league this season, but blew it (almost inevitably). Except this time, there really is/was no excuse for him.
And that is why you are banned! Bye..